Law Office Management
Sep. 2, 2013
The California 50: Life at Big Firms
Data from the California 50 survey reveals trends in big firm life.
44% of 2013 California summer associates were women
46.7% of law school Students in the U.S. were women (2012)
37% of 2013 California summer associates were minorities
24.5% of law school students in the U.S. were minorities (2012) Contract Attorneys
475: Number hired in California by CA 50 firms
49% of CA 50 Contract attorneys are women
29% of CA 50 Contract attorneys are minorities Pro Bono Programs
Most big California firms now have at least one JD managing pro bono work - some finding new opportunities and linking lawyers with clients, some as lead counsel, and some doing both. Morrison & Foerster pro bono counsel Rachel P. Williams, one of three lawyers managing her firm's long-standing pro bono program, says she still gets "many more requests than we can handle." Hilarie Atkisson, pro bono manager at Bingham McCutchen, says her "role grew as the need grew." Jamie Broder and Tollie Besson, cochairs of Paul Hastings's pro bono committee, say both new and experienced lawyers there love the sense of satisfaction they get working on cases for the ACLU, Bet Tzedek Legal Services, Public Counsel, veterans, and immigrant and refugee children (through KIND). While traditional clinical work abounds, says Fenwick & West's Julie Park, even transactional and intellectual property attorneys now find numerous opportunities - helping small businesses form, new inventors secure patents, or nonprofits do legal audits. 38.8: Average pro bono hours logged overall
78.8: Average logged by lawyers who do pro bono
60: Minimum the ABA recommends
Kari Santos
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